The Reign of Chaos
by Realmeryl
Summary: This story is based on UOP or Ultima Online Philippines and the characters are the Pinoy players who play the game. The story is meant for them, but if you want to read even if you're not a UOP player, go ahead.
1. Chapter 1: An Adventure

**Chapter 1: An Adventure**

It was almost the same as any typical day in the world of Britannia. Meryl woke up early in the morning and changed from her robes to her favorite Rose Armor. She grabbed the bag of reagents she kept in one of the bookshelves in her room, and also brought a few bottles of Mana Refresh just in case she had no time to meditate. Then, she was all set to go.

She randomly picked a shrunken Zostrich in the crate beside the bookshelf. It turned out that the one she chose was the Black Rock Zostrich. Meryl released it and mounted after she exited her house.

It was a beautiful day and the breeze was calm and gentle. Meryl took out some reagents from her bag and held out a rune, and chanted, "Kal Ort Por." Soon, she found herself in the busy town of Vesper. As she trotted on her Zostrich towards Vesper Bank, she decided to venture through Wrong Dungeon in order to earn herself some gold since she seemed to be running low on them.

At the bank, she picked up her Viking Sword of Vanquishing and her Rose heater shield. She also caught sight of her young cousin known as Saber, who seemed to be picking up his shield and weapons from his bank box, too. He was the type of person who enjoyed going on adventures, especially dangerous ones. Meryl figured that he might want to come with her to Wrong because of this.

"Saber!" Meryl called.

"Good morning, Meryl!" Saber replied.

"I was wondering if you would like to join me in cleaning up Wrong Dungeon."

"Of course I would!" Saber answered excitedly. "As long as it will be fun, I'm always in!"

"Alright. But on one condition," Meryl replied, "Don't make me use up all my reagents for rescuing you!" She smirked.

"I'll try." Saber replied with a tone of annoyance.

He pulled out an Elven Bow and some arrows from his bank box. He also withdrew a set of Agapite Armor.

"Alright. These are all I'm taking." Saber told the banker.

"Thank you, sir, and good day!" The baker replied with a smile.

Meryl pulled out two runes from her bank box: one Wrong Dungeon rune and one Vesper rune.

"I'm done here too." She told the banker.

"Yes, milady. Good day to you!" The banker said.

Meryl and Saber exited the bank and mounted zostriches.

"Ready?" Meryl asked her cousin as she held out the Wrong Dungeon rune.

Before Saber could answer, someone from afar yelled their names and started running towards them.

"YOU'RE NOT LEAVING WITHOUT ME!"

Meryl and Saber turned to see the one who interrupted them. It was Jerk, Meryl's cousin and Saber's older brother.

"Well, if it isn't my idiotic brother, Jerk." Saber said with sarcasm and rolled is eyes.

"Long time no see, Jerk!" Meryl exclaimed.

He panted as he reached his two relatives.

"If you are going to Wrong, I'm coming with you." Jerk said between breaths.

"Alright." Meryl replied. "Get yourself ready and hurry it up."

Jerk went inside Vesper bank and soon came out armed and ready with his Old Copper Armor, and a Broadsword of Vanquishing. With the words, "Kal Xen", he summoned himself a horse and mounted on it.

"Let's go." Meryl said.

She held up the rune with one hand and a handful of reagents with the other and chanted, "Vas Rel Por". Soon, the reagents disintegrated and a red moongate opened. Meryl placed the rune back into her bag and she, Saber, and Jerk entered the gate.

Somewhere near Vesper bank, two men clad in Bronze armor and Bloodrock armor watched the three young Criterions disappear as they entered the moongate.

"Well, they're at it again." The man in Bloodrock armor said as he leaned forward on the hilt of his Viking sword. "Don't you think we should go after them, Greenarcher?"

Greenarcher, who was busy eating a loaf of bread, replied.

"No. They're a waste of reagents if you ask me, Lestat."

Lestat chuckled and sheathed his sword, then went into the Magery shop to buy more reagents.


	2. Chapter 2: Attack at Wrong

**Chapter 2: Attack at Wrong**

Wrong Dungeon was a very messy place. It was inhabited by many hideous monsters such as Balrons and Dragons. Even the agile, hard-hitting Lizardmen rested in some areas of the place.

Meryl, Saber, and Jerk appeared in the fourth level of the dungeon, where the most dangerous of the monsters dwelt. They hid behind a wall opposite a red dragon that was strolling around as if guarding the area.

"Alright." Meryl said. "Let's take on the dragon. Jerk, your long absence might have made you a little rusty so be careful."

"I have not forgotten how to fight." Jerk replied.

Saber snickered and Jerk glared at him.

"And what is so funny?" He asked his brother sharply.

Saber cleared his throat and straightened up his face at Jerk's question.

"So, Meryl, when do we attack?" Saber asked, changing the subject.

"The plan is this: I paralyze the dragon and cast a paralyze field on it. Jerk, you poison it and cast your lightning spells, while you, Saber, keep hitting it with your arrows. Understand?" Meryl said.

The two Criterions nodded and Meryl took out a handful of reagents from her bag. She leaped out of the wall with her zostrich and yelled, "AN EX POR!" The dragon roared and faced the offender. After a few seconds, it was unable to move. Meryl casted a paralyze field afterwards in front of her opponent. The dragon roared even more loudly with anger and tried to attack Meryl, but the field prevented it from doing so.

"Jerk! Saber! Attack now!" Meryl signaled.

By that minute, she expected her two cousins to leap out from their place and start doing what she told them to do. But not one of them came out of that wall nor replied to her.

Meryl, getting rather annoyed, yelled again. "Jerk! Saber!"

Nothing.

She grunted and decided to kill the dragon herself. Before Meryl could cast her poison spell, she heard a familiar scream. Soon, she found both Jerk and Saber running as fast as they could towards her with frightened looks on their faces.

"Hey! Where's your zostrich, Saber? And Jerk, your horse?" Meryl asked.

"RUN!" Saber screamed.

"What!"

"Energy Vortex!" Jerk shouted.

Meryl saw it; one of the deadliest creatures one could summon. It had the speed of a Lizardman and double its strength. The angry purplish demon gained on her cousins. Meryl had her zostrich take her behind the paralyze field.

"Go here! Quick!" Meryl instructed.

Jerk and Saber split up and ran opposite directions and then hid behind the field. The Energy Vortex caught sight of the paralyzed dragon and suddenly switched its target. It attacked the dragon instead. The new opponent, also filled with fiery fury fought back and was freed from the field.

Meryl, Saber, and Jerk watched the battle behind the disappearing paralyze field as the dragon spat its fire and the Vortex throw its hard punches on the dragon's chest.

"The dragon's about to lose." Meryl said softly as she studied the status of each of the warring monsters.

She was right, because in a matter of minutes, the dragon fell down, dead. The Energy Vortex, after finally attaining victory, caught sight of the three young Criterions and began to chase them with a newborn fury. Meryl, Jerk, and Saber split up as they ran and the Vortex gained on Jerk.

"Help!" Jerk yelled.

Meryl quickly grabbed some reagents from her bag and held them out, aiming at the enemy.

"An Ort!" She chanted.

In a matter of seconds, the Vortex disappeared in a poof of smoke. Jerk panted as he approached the dead dragon's body. Meryl sighed.

"Where did that damn Energy Vortex come from?" She asked rather angrily.

"I don't know." Saber replied, looting the items on the dragon's body. "It just suddenly appeared and attacked us."

"But there aren't any Liche Lords or any magic users near the area we came from!" Meryl answered. "Wait a minute." A realization struck her. "That must mean someone else is here."

"That is correct." A deep, cold, feminine voice echoed, sending a chill down Meryl's spine.

"Who's there?" Meryl asked bravely as she unsheathed her Viking sword of Vanquising.

A knight in BlackRock Armor riding on a black mustang came out from the shadows. She removed her helmet and revealed herself to the Criterions.

"U-Urumi Kanzaki!" Meryl stammered.

Urumi was one of the deadliest murderers in the whole of Britannia. She had killed many famed and great warriors from different guilds. No one ever dared to face her in battle. Those who did ended up having their heads displayed in her fortress.

Jerk and Saber, after seeing the woman, froze in horror and slowly backed away from the dragon's carcass.

"Well, well," Urumi said, amused. "I found myself three helpless rats of the Criterions" She smiled evilly. "Too bad you won't be able to live long enough to see the next generation."

Meryl glared at Urumi in order to cover up her fear.

"We may not be able to live long enough, but that doesn't mean that we're going to die now!" Meryl replied fiercely.

Urumi let out a small laugh.

"Interesting. So you wish to challenge me?"

"I have no choice, if our lives depend on it." Meryl answered.

On her zostrich, she charged at Urumi and swung her sword. Urumi blocked the attack by quickly drawing her sword. Meryl backed away and swung her weapon again. Her opponent parried the blow and counter attacked. She slashed Meryl on the shoulder and caused her to fall off her zostrich.

"Ah!" Meryl cried as she hit the ground.

Her zostrich, realizing what just happened, furiously started to attack Urumi. Meryl checked her shoulder and noticed that only her shoulder plate armor had been damaged.

"Meryl!" Saber called. "Are you alright?"

He and Jerk approached and helped her stand up.

"I'm fine. But that Urumi can really hit hard…" She replied.

It didn't take long before Urumi drove her sword through the chest of Meryl's zostrich. It fell down dead and its blood flowed on the ground. Urumi then turned to Meryl, Saber, and Jerk.

"Who's next?" She said evilly.

"RUN!" Meryl shouted and she sheathed her sword.

The three quickly spun around and broke into a run. They passed through a long hallway filled with the dead bodies of monsters that were probably killed by Urumi's Energy Vortex. They ran as fast as they could and tried to find a safe area. Suddenly, Meryl heard the words, "An Ex Por", and Jerk, the last person behind her, froze.

"Help!" Jerk yelled.

Meryl stopped and turned around, while Saber continued to run ahead of her. Before he could go any further, Meryl called out to him and threw him a rune.

"Recall yourself out of here and save yourself. I'll go and help Jerk." She ordered and then drew her sword.

"Alright." Saber replied with uncertainty. He took out the needed reagents and held out the rune. With the words, "Kal Ort Por", Saber vanished.

Focusing on Urumi, Meryl also took out some reagents and aimed at her enemy.

"In Por Ylem!" She cried.

A fiery arrow shot out from the palm of her hand and hit Urumi before she could cast a paralyze field. Urumi's mustang backed away, and Meryl dashed straight towards her and prepared to attack. Urumi held out her shield and blocked the strike. She held up her own sword too, and soon, they were both locked in a heated battle.

Jerk was already able to move and he watched the fight. Meryl noticed this as she blocked one of Urumi's attacks with her sword and shield.

"Jerk! Get out of here now!" Meryl ordered and counter-attacked Urumi.

"What about you?" Jerk asked. He noticed Meryl's armor was already badly damaged.

"Don't worry, I'll keep Urumi busy!" Meryl said. "Recall yourself out now!"

Jerk nodded and pulled out a rune and reagents.

"Kal Ort Por." He chanted and soon, vanished.

"Now it's just you and me, Urumi." Meryl said.

"Fine with me." Her opponent replied and swung her sword at Meryl. She defended with her shield and then drove her weapon upwards, meaning to hit Urumi through the vulnerable part of her armor. The mustang suddenly stood on its hind legs, evading the blow, and pushed Meryl with its fore legs. She was off guard and Urumi, seeing her chance, slashed her right arm as the mustang positioned itself back on the ground. The sword cut through the Rose armor and also through Meryl's flesh. She backed away and clutched her arm as she felt the pain sear all throughout it. An amount of blood began to drip down her armor. Despite the pain, she still held her sword in her injured arm.

"Does it hurt?" Urumi asked and grinned evilly a she held up her bloodstained Black Rock sword.

Meryl, breathing heavily, just replied with a death glare. Urumi had surely defeated her. She had no more chance against her, especially with a severely wounded arm.

Urumi pulled out some of her reagents and held them out, aiming at Meryl.

"In Vas Por."

Meryl's eyes widened when she heard these words. An explosion was unleashed from Urumi's hand and threw Meryl backwards. Her sword flew out of her grip and she hit the wall a few meters behind her. She cried in pain and dropped to the ground.

Urumi approached the writhing Criterion and dismounted her mustang. Meryl sat up to face her and watched as she held up her weapon, getting ready to strike.

"Your head is now mine." Urumi said coldly.

Before she could cut off Meryl's head, an arrow shot out from the shadows and pierced through her armor.

"What?" Urumi exclaimed and peered into the darkness.

Meryl also turned her head to the same direction, and to her surprise, she found a knight in Bloodrock armor charge at Urumi on his matching red zostrich. She quickly blocked the knight's attack and rolled on the ground to decrease the force the knight exerted. She mounted on her mustang, and she and the red knight began to battle. The sound of the clashing of their swords echoed throughout the dungeon.

"I believe I deserve a thanks after this." A deep voice from behind Meryl rang through her ears.

Meryl whipped around and found another knight in bronze armor, carrying a bow of vanquishing.

"W-Who are you?" Meryl asked weakly.

She sensed the man grin under his helmet. He removed it and revealed himself.

"G-Greenarcher!"

"You're in bad shape." Greenarcher said as he examined her.

Meanwhile, the red knight was having quite a hard time with his fight with Urumi.

"Greenarcher!" He called out as he shot a Magic arrow at his foe. "Take Meryl and get her out of here!"

"Done." Greenarcher replied. "Meryl, can you stand?" He asked as he helped her up.

"I th-think so." She answered, trying to stand.

Pain suddenly shot through her whole body and she dropped back to the ground.

"Argh!" She cried. Her vision started to blur.

"Damn!" She heard Greenarcher say. "Lestat! She's lost a lot of blood!"

"Bring her back to the Criterion house, quickly!" Lestat replied urgently as he blocked one of Urumi's attacks.

Meryl began to feel dizzy. It did not take long before she blacked out.


	3. Chapter 3: The Declaration of War

**Chapter 3: The Declaration of War**

Meryl woke up inside a rather huge, stone-walled room. She was in the healing room of the Criterion house. She got up, still feeling weak, and peered around her surroundings. She was stripped of her armor and was wearing a white robe, and had bandages around her wounds.

Suddenly, the door to the room opened and a woman, wearing a viridian colored dress, entered. It was Miffy, one of the few females of the Criterion guild besides Meryl.

"Meryl, you're awake!" Miffy said with slight surprise. "Are you feeling better?"

"A little…" Meryl replied softly.

"Don't worry." Miffy grinned and approached Meryl. "After this, you'll be alright."

She pulled out a few reagents from the pouch that was tied on her belt and held them over Meryl.

"In Vas Mani." She chanted.

Meryl suddenly felt refreshed and as if she had regained her strength.

"Thank you, Miffy." Meryl said with a smile.

"You're welcome." Miffy smiled back. "You were lucky that you survived after all the blood you lost. It was a good thing you were brought back right away. You had almost the whole guild worrying about you!"

Meryl let out a small laugh.

"Sorry about that." She replied. "Oh, how are Jerk and Saber? Are they alright?"

"They're fine. They're already outside dueling with each other."

"I see. Thank you again." Meryl replied.

--

"AN EX POR!" Saber shouted as he aimed at Jerk.

"Oh no you don't!" Jerk yelled. "IN POR YLEM!"

A magic arrow shot out from his hand and hit his brother. Saber's reagents immediately disintegrated in a poof of smoke. Jerk, on his brand new horse, charged at Saber, who was also on a new gray horse. Jerk unsheathed his Viking sword and slashed, but Saber, being the more agile one, quickly drew his own sword and blocked the attack.

"Hah!" Saber cried with arrogance.

The two began to hack and slash at each other, while each of them bragged about how good they were. Darth Maul, Shacklebolt, and Totoy Mola, who were all watching the fight between Saber and Jerk, cheered and applauded.

"Saber's improving." Totoy Mola said.

"So is Jerk, despite his long absence." Darth Maul replied.

"I bet you a hundred gold pieces Saber's going to win." Shacklebolt said coolly to Darth Maul.

Darth Maul raised an eyebrow.

"Alright, I accept your challenge. Prepare to lose!" He replied with a smirk.

Meryl was now geared in iron armor. She opened the main gate and stepped out. She found her two cousins dueling, along with three other Criterions who were watching their progress.

"It looks like you're feeling better now."

Meryl startled and looked to her side. Greenarcher stood there with arms crossed, leaning back on the wall. She sighed with relief.

"You startled me." She said.

Meryl went down the steps and suddenly remembered something, and turned to the bronze armored archer.

"How is Lestat? He dueled with Urumi, didn't he?" She asked.

"Lestat is fine." Greenarcher answered as he approached Meryl. "We were actually lucky because she recalled herself out of Wrong shortly after you fainted."

"Why is that?" Meryl asked,confused. "Urumi retreated?"

"For now, she did. After she injured Lestat on his waist, she announced her true purpose of attacking you in the dungeon. Your dead body, apparently, was supposed to be her declaration of war against us."

Meryl's eyes widened with shock.

"A war!" She exclaimed so loudly that her two cousins heard her in the middle of their match.

"What war?" They asked in unison.

Even Shacklebolt, Totoy Mola, and Darth Maul seemed surprised.

"A war between Order and Chaos." Lestat's voice answered from the gate.

Everyone turned to him, wanting an explanation. Lestat was wearing a violet robe and he wore a grave expression in his face as he approached his fellowmen.

"I've already told those inside the Criterion house. Urumi Kanzaki has declared war against us with the purpose to destroy the balance between Order and Chaos. After she has destroyed us, she will advance to the Heretics, and then to other Order guilds until she has finished all of them." Lestat explained.

Meryl suddenly gripped the hilt of her sheathed sword tightly and muttered, "Is that so…"

"For all we know, Urumi may be preparing her army. If she gets anymore powerful than now, it will be impossible to defeat her. And once she does defeat us and every single man who stands for Order…" Lestat paused. "The whole of Britannia will be under her reign."

"I'm going out." Meryl blurted out.

"Whereto?" Lestat asked, rather surprised, and eyed her suspiciously.

"Just… somewhere important…" Meryl said quietly and with a tone of hesitation. "Totoy Mola, I'll need a mustang or a zostrich. You do have an extra one, don't you?"

"Of course." Totoy Mola answered and he went into the Criterion house.

Lestat still had his eyes on Meryl but turned to Greenarcher and Shacklebolt.

"Greenarcher, Shacklebolt, I need you two to look for the rest of the Criterions and tell them to come to the Criterion house immediately. I will be holding a meeting tonight." Lestat ordered.

"Yes, sir!" Greenarcher and Shacklebolt replied.

They mounted on their horses that were tied to a tree and rode off in different directions.

Totoy Mola returned and handed Meryl a shrunken Mythril zostrich. She released it and mounted on her new ride.

"Thank you." She said, and Totoy Mola nodded. He then returned to the Criterion house.

"Where are you going?" Saber asked Meryl.

Meryl pulled out a rune. After examining it, she realized that it was already out of charges. She then looked at her two cousins.

"Don't worry. I'll be back soon." She said and then turned to Lestat.

"Lestat, I'll be on way now. I'll be back as soon as I can." She told him.

Lestat nodded.

"Alright."

After hearing his answer, Meryl rode off, heading to the direction of Britain.


	4. Chapter 4: The Meeting

**Chapter 4: The Meeting**

Many hours have passed, and Meryl still has not yet reached her destination. She glanced up at the sky. It was nearly dark and she wondered if she was even near Britain territory.

She was in a very wide field with no inhabitants. There were a few trees and the area was quite perfect for people to put up their houses in. It was isolated from the noisiest of towns and cities.

Meryl's exhaustion caught up with her, and she decided to rest underneath one of the trees. She dismounted her mythril zostrich and tied it to the tree. Dropping beside it, she leaned back on the tree trunk and sighed.

"I wonder how far I still have to go…" She wondered.

Nightfall was already minutes away. She began to regret not bringing Jerk or Saber along with her since it did not seem safe enough to camp out alone in the dark. She would have at least felt safer if someone else was with her.

It did not take too long before she drifted off to sleep, totally unaware that someone was watching her from behind the darkness.

--

Meanwhile, at the Criterion house, most of the Criterion members have already arrived for Lestat's meeting. All of them were assembled inside the motherhouse, each one seated in the great hall. Lestat stood from his place in front and called for Shacklebolt.

"Are all of them present?" He asked.

"Yes, except for Meryl and Mamyel." Shacklebolt replied.

"I see." Lestat said with wonder. "Very well. We haven't much time. We will begin without them."

"If you say so…" Shacklebolt said before going back to his seat.

Lestat turned to the rest of the Criterions, and they all fell in silence. In a loud voice, he made his announcement.

"Fellow Criterions, you are all gathered here tonight for a very important matter. As you all should know, Urumi Kanzaki has declared war on us recently in Wrong dungeon. All we know now is that she may be strengthening her forces in order to attain her goal. We, too, must prepare ourselves for this battle."

Suddenly, there was a loud knock at the gate. Greenarcher, who was nearest to the gate, peeked out through a window.

"It's Mamyel!" He exclaimed.

"Open the gate!" Lestat ordered.

Greenarcher did as told and opened the gate. Mamyel was panting, and behind him were three unidentified knights all on black mustangs. One of them wore Mythril armor, and the other two wore Bloodrock, much like Lestat's, and Old copper armor.

Upon seeing Lestat, Mamyel immediately dashed towards him.

"Urgent news, Lestat!" He said with the expression of fear in his face.

"What is it? Calm down, Mamyel!" Lestat said.

All the Criterions had their eyes on him. He was in panic, and Lestat knew that this news was not going to be a good one.

"Urumi has merged with other chaos guilds!" Mamyel blurted out.

"What!" Lestat replied, taken aback.

"She already has the likes of Tim-o-Fee on her side. But that isn't the worst of it…" Mamyel said, pausing for a while. "Even the monsters have sided with her as well!"

"What do you mean?" Lestat asked, with anxiety taking over him.

"She has attained the ability to tame even the wildest of monsters, sir." Mamyel replied, trying to calm himself down.

"Damn!" Lestat cursed. "How was she able to learn such a skill? If this keeps up, we'll lose this war for sure!"

"Lestat!" Greenarcher's call cut off Lestat's thoughts.

He turned to his comrade.

"What is it?" He then asked.

"I believe we have company." Greenarcher replied, showing him the three unidentified knights that no one seemed to notice. "These men are looking for you."

Lestat eyed the three suspiciously and approached them.

"What purpose do you hold for being here?" Lestat asked.

"I come to challenge the leader of the Criterions to a duel." The knight in Mythril replied, and he backed away on his mustang to the open field in front of the Criterion house.

The other two knights followed but stayed farther away at the side to give space and room for Lestat and their companion.

There was something very familiar about the mythril knight for Lestat. But he wasn't in the mood to try to remember because of the problems that have been arising.

"Are you of Urumi Kanzaki's troops?" Lestat asked firmly.

"Questions are irrelevant before a challenge, Sir Lestat. I am certain that you already know this." The mythril knight said in reply.

Lestat turned to Greenarcher.

"Get me my mustang." He ordered.

"But Lestat," Greenarcher whispered, "It could be a trap."

"I'll be alright. Don't worry." Lestat replied.

Greenarcher nodded and left to get the mustang.

Lestat stepped out of the Criterion house and stood across his opponent. He pulled out a spider's silk and sulfurous ash and chanted, "In Lor." Suddenly, his eyes became enlightened and he was able to see more clearly in the darkness. The mythril knight also did the same. It did not take too long before Greenarcher returned, pulling Lestat's trusty mustang.

"Thank you." Lestat told Greenarcher and he mounted on the animal.

The mythril knight drew his war axe. The rest of the Criterions stood outside the house, watching, as Lestat drew his Viking sword and turned to the knight.

"Prepare yourself!" He bellowed.

Seconds later, both warriors were engaged in their duel.


	5. Chapter 5: The Loss of a Leader

**Chapter 5: The Loss of a Leader**

Meryl bolted up from the tree trunk, breathing heavily. She had just awakened from a nightmare of two armies of Chaos and Order charging furiously towards her. She turned to her zostrich and saw it still curled up and sound asleep beside her.

It was dark and only the stars and the moons served as the light. There was a slight breeze which made Meryl feel cool and refreshed. She was about to lean back on the tree trunk again when there was a sudden rustle in the leaves above. Meryl would have guessed that it was the breeze that caused the noise, but it seemed too strong for it to be so.

She gazed up the tree braches. Taking out some reagents from her bag, she chanted "In Lor." Her eyes enlightened and she was able to see as clearly as during the daytime. To her surprise, she found a lightly armed man watching her from one of the branches. She knew him: Chobits.

"I should be more cautious around you next time." He said, grinning, and he jumped off to the ground.

Meryl glared at him.

"What were you doing?" She asked with a tone of annoyance.

"My duty, milady." Chobits replied respectfully.

Meryl positioned her hand over the hilt of her sheathed sword.

"If you are going to kill me, do it now." She said, still glaring.

Chobits was a former Criterion under the first leader, PARC. Just when he was about to gain the guild's trust, he betrayed them and had many famed Criterion members killed. This had caused the temporary downfall of the guild, and the probable death of the great PARC himself. Chobits was now a rogue, siding with either good or evil depending on his favors. He was a neutral, but unlike the renowned Heretics, he was more inclined to Chaos than to Order.

"You know that I won't do that, Meryl. I could kill you anytime I want to, but now is not the time." He replied.

"Then what is your purpose for being here?" The Criterion snapped. "Don't try to protect yourself. I know you're here not just to watch me sleep."

Chobits let out a small laugh.

"Don't worry, milady. I don't plan on killing you… yet." He replied. "I look forward to meeting you in the battlefield."

With that, he grinned widely and pulled out a rune and reagents.

"Kal Ort Por." He chanted.

Seconds later, he vanished, leaving Meryl to calm herself down from the anxiety she felt during their conversation.

"I'll see you there…" She whispered a reply, even though she knew he could not hear her.

She assumed that Chobits, the traitor, had joined Urumi Kanzaki's forces. It seemed that the side of Chaos was getting much stronger—probably stronger than the side of Order. With this in mind, Meryl awakened her zostrich.

"Come on, our naptime is over." She said.

The zostrich hesitantly stood up and Meryl mounted on it.

"I know you're still tired but we've still got a long way. Let's go."

--

"Who is that?" Spectre asked worriedly as he watched the duel between Lestat and the mysterious mythril armored knight. "And who are the other two?"

Mamyel shook his head.

"I'm sorry to say I don't know." He replied. "They followed me here saying that they wished to challenge Lestat."

Totoy Mola snorted.

"If I were him, I would have followed Mamyel to challenge the women of the Criterions instead!"

All the Criterions turned their heads to him and gave him a blank stare. Miffy, on the other hand, shot him a death glare.

"What?" Totoy Mola managed to say when he found pairs of eyes looking at him.

"I can't believe you'd even think about women at a time like this!" Warlord said sharply. "Meryl would have given you more than just a glare if she'd heard that."

"Who said I was thinking about Meryl?" Totoy Mola replied. "I would have waited for her to mature a few more years, though, but she's already taken anyway."

The Criterions then shifted their heads to Greenarcher, whose cheeks slightly turned pink. Unable to bear the embarrassment, he decided to change the subject.

"Let's just continue watching the duel, shall we? It looks like the mythril knight has the advantage now."

--

Lestat panted as he held up his sword. He had fallen off his mustang after his opponent casted a Harm spell on him.

"I'll make this a fair fight." The mythril knight said under his armor and dismounted his mustang. "Stay…" He whispered to it.

He then faced the leader of the Criterions and prepared to strike him. Lestat quickly held up his shield and counter attacked. His opponent backed away and pulled out his reagents.

"Por Ort Grav!" He chanted.

But Lestat swiftly took some of his reagents too, and chanted, "Des Mani." The mythril knight was suddenly weakened and the spell he tried to cast, fizzled in smoke.

"You're better than I expected, Lestat!" The knight commended, and he charged at him with his war axe. Lestat, blocking the attack, replied with a bit of pride.

"Would you not expect it from the leader of a guild?"

He pushed his opponent back and immediately thrusted his sword forward, aiming for the shoulder area. But the knight easily evaded it, and spun behind Lestat, striking the back of his head with the handle of his war axe.

Lestat lost his balance and stumbled to the ground.

"Get up." The knight demanded in his deep, god-like voice.

Lestat rose. Holding up his sword once again, he hid away his exhaustion. He was determined not to lose this fight, not while he held the pride of the Criterions on his shoulders. If there were anyone who would defeat him, it would have to be a fellow Criterion.

He attacked the knight again, this time exerting more power than he did when the duel began. Blocking the blow with his shield, the knight swung his war axe diagonally at the Criterion leader, but narrowly missed. Lestat speedily counter attacked, but his opponent moved faster, and defended himself with his war axe against the vicious strike. Roughly pushing Lestat's weapon away, he grabbed reagents from his pouch and chanted again, "Por Ort Grav!" Lestat did not have enough time to regain his balance nor use a Weaken or Magic Arrow spell, and so was stricken by the casted lightning.

It was definitely not a pleasant feeling for the Criterion. It was as if he was being burned alive, but only for a moment. He dropped to the ground again, but before he could stand up, the mythril knight pointed his war axe under his chin. Lestat froze.

"You lose." The knight said.

This ignited a flame of anger within Lestat. He was humiliated.

"I have lost… the pride of the Criterions…" He said with regret.

The mythril knight seemed taken aback and withdrew his weapon.

"No, Lestat. You are still carrying that pride." He said, and finally removed his helmet.

Lestat's eyes widened with shock as he gazed at the knight's face. The watching Criterions also carried the same expression at what they saw.

"That isn't…" Warlord gasped.

"It can't be--!" Mamyel cut in.

"PARC!" Lestat exclaimed.


	6. Reunion of Master and Apprentice

**Chapter 6: Reunion of Master and Apprentice**

Britain—this was one of the largest cities in Britannia. It was a larger city than Vesper, and of course, a very popular one with a greater population. 

Meryl rode through the streets of Britain, searching for the bank. It was already morning and she had finally reached her destination minutes after the break of dawn.

When she finally made it to the bank, which took her quite a long time to do because of Britain's large area, she pulled out the rune that was out of charges and also a handful of reagents.

"Kal Por Ylem." She chanted and the rune she held glowed with the color of Britain.

Placing back the rune in her bag, she dismounted her zostrich and entered Britain's bank.

"Good morning, milady! How may I help you?" The banker greeted with a smile.

Meryl smiled back.

"Actually, I have no deposits or withdrawals to make at the moment." She said. "But perhaps you can help me by telling me the whereabouts of a man named Jore—"

"GUARDS!" Someone screamed from outside the bank, interrupting Meryl.

It did not take long before the sound of hooves approached the area outside the entrance to the bank.

"It must be a thief." The banker said, wondering.

Meryl exited the bank, out of her curiosity, and found right next to her zostrich a bronze armored man wearing a black robe. In front of him was the infamous Imonem, being held at the collar by the guard. Imonem was the cleverest of thieves. She was rarely ever caught pick pocketing and stealing, and she had always managed to get away with everything she did.

"Well, well, if it isn't the ignoble Imonem! You're wanted in almost all the guard posts of Britannia!" The guard said maliciously.

"My, my, aren't I that popular!" Imonem answered smugly.

She turned her head and seemed to get an interest in Meryl's zostrich. 

"It's early in the morning and you're already up to your usual thievery!" The black-robed man, whom Meryl identified as Sieghart, exclaimed.

Imonem looked at him sharply.

"It's never too early or too late to get what I want. Thievery knows no night or day!" She replied and turned back to Meryl's zostrich, giving it a seemingly blank stare.

"And criminals such as you deserve to die." The guard added. "You know the law."

The guard raised his halberd. Suddenly, Meryl's zostrich let out a cry and furiously attacked the guard before he could strike Imonem. He released the thief out of distraction, and Imonem immediately slipped away from the scene. It seemed that she had used a provocation skill on the zostrich.

The guard fought back with the zostrich and he raised his halberd again. 

"Begone, vile creature!" He bellowed.

"No, wait!" Meryl exclaimed, but it was too late.

Her zostrich's limp body dropped to the ground as its blood flowed freely from its neck. Meryl stared at the dead creature, completely filled with both anger and shock while the guard rode away, cursing Imonem as he searched for her.

"Lady Meryl."

Meryl broke away from her shock and turned to Sieghart, one of the members of the Heretics guild and also the older brother of Shacklebolt and Voldemort.

"Sieghart! Good morning!" Meryl greeted.

"I hope the death of your mythril zostrich did not affect you too much." Sieghart said.

"Uh… No. It's alright." Meryl replied. "What about you? Imonem tried to pickpocket you did she not?"

"Unfortunately, she was able to get away with my bag of reagents and mana potions. Now I'll have to restock." Sieghart answered as he gazed down the direction Imonem had gone.

"So," He suddenly said. "What brings you all the way here to Britain at an early time of day?"

"Actually, I'm looking for Jore'Sal. I'm sure you know where he is." Meryl replied.

Sieghart pointed to the northern part of Britain.

"North, in the large magery shop. Jade is with him."

"I see." Meryl said. "Thank you for your help."

After giving him one of her friendly smiles, Meryl left him by the bank and headed to the magery shop. It did not take long before she reached it.

She found him, Jore'Sal, inside the shop purchasing reagents. Beside him was the fair Jade, his 'would-be' partner. She was a beautiful woman. She was not a warrior though, unlike Meryl, but she was a merchant who sold furniture made of wood.

Jore'Sal, on the other hand, was claimed to be one of the most powerful fighters in Britannia. He was the current guildmaster of the Heretics, taking the place of the noble Aleon Vileslayer, who was absent along with several other Heretics members. Apparently, they were on a mission on a faraway land, and no one has heard from them since.

Though Jore'Sal was under the Heretics, he was also Meryl's trainer and master. It was he who taught her the fine art of battle and he continues to do so until the day arrives when she finally perfects every tactic taught to her.

"Jore'Sal…?" Meryl called as she entered the shop.

Jore'Sal turned to her and gave a small smile of what seemed to be of amusement.

"Come with me." He said, and Meryl looked at him questionably.

He whispered something to Jade, and then pulled out a rune. Taking the needed reagents, he chanted, "Vas Rel Por."

A moongate appeared after a few seconds, and Jore'Sal and Jade stepped into it. Meryl followed shortly, still slightly confused. She reappeared in a field full of houses and a tower; Jore'Sal's tower. She immediately recognized the place: the Heretics base. 

Meryl suddenly felt a disturbance in her environment. When she turned her head, she found a sword coming down to slash her. Instinctively, she quickly drew her sword and blocked the attack. She focused her eyes on the attacker: Jore'Sal.

"Your reflexes have improved, I see." He said, smirking arrogantly. 

Annoyed, Meryl pushed his weapon away and stepped back, still holding up her own sword.

"Have you lost your mind!" Meryl exclaimed. "You could have killed me!"

"That's the reason why I train you." Jore'Sal replied, sheathing his sword.

"Arrogant as ever…" Meryl muttered, also sheathing her weapon.

Meryl, Jore'Sal, and Jade entered the tower. It was very well decorated inside and every object seen proved how wealthy and powerful the Heretics were. Jore'Sal sat on one of his thrones and Meryl stood across him. Jade left them alone while she went to the upper floors to continue with her carpentry.

"I've already heard about what happened in Wrong dungeon, especially about Urumi's declaration of war against the Criterions." Jore'Sal said.

Meryl nodded. "Actually, she plans to target the Heretics next once she's done with us."

"I see…" Jore'Sal replied, and he rested his chin on his knuckles, as if he were thinking. "And you're here because…?"

"I… uh…" Meryl stuttered. "I seek extensive training…" Meryl said, almost in a whisper.

She had lost eye contact with Jore'Sal, and she stared down at her feet.

"I'll need it, especially since we're up against Urumi Kanzaki…" Meryl added.

Jore'Sal stood and approached her. It was only now that Meryl realized that he was a very tall man, but her thoughts were interrupted when he roughly and heavily placed his hand on top of her head.

"Ow!" Meryl cried, looking up at her master.

"What are you so embarrassed about?" Jore'Sal asked. "If it is training you want, just ask and I will give. Remember, it was I who devoted myself to teaching an idiot like you, and I take pride in it." Jore'Sal said, grinning.

Meryl smiled back, like a child who was given something she has always wanted.

"Thank you, Jore'Sal." She said.

"I will gather the rest of the Heretics. I think it is best if we join forces with the Criterions and help them with the war. We will depart for the Criterion base in three days." Jore'Sal said, and he approached the gate of his tower.

Meryl turned and followed him.

"I hope that armor you're wearing," Jore'Sal suddenly said, "will be able to endure our three days of training."

Meryl looked at herself, and realized that the iron armor she was wearing would not help her against Jore'Sal's vicious attacks.

"Oh…" Meryl said.

"No matter. I'll give you a new set." Jore'Sal said. "I think a brand new Rose armor would do."

Hearing this, Meryl smiled and followed Jore'Sal as he stepped outside his tower.


	7. Chapter 7: Preparations

**Chapter 7: Preparations**

Xylotyl, Nightflame, Sieghart, Kyo, and the Lady Smoke were all soon in Jore'Sal's tower, The Tower of The Nephilim. Meryl was on the top floor in a small room made for her, while Jade stayed somewhere in the lower floors, preparing rations and supplies for the battle ahead. The rest of the Heretics had their meeting with Guild Master at the first floor in the tower's hall. All of them were seated, listening to the announcement their leader is giving.

Meryl, still confused, glanced down again at the old spellbook Jore'Sal had handed to her. She recalled the events that happened today, from the moment she received a beautiful and brand new set of Rose armor from her master. She had thanked him many times in her mind while she changed from her iron armor. What came next was a very difficult spar between them. It took quite a long time before she gave up and dropped to the ground with exhaustion. She had barely laid a scratch on him after all the energy she had exerted during the entire fight. But he had done otherwise. He was not as fatigued as she, and he stood upright, as if he had only defeated a Skeleton Archer. 

Minutes later, he had called Meryl to his tower and gave her a thick ancient old book. It had the appearance of a spellbook, except that it was black, instead of brown.

"The time has come for you to learn this," Jore'Sal said. "especially if you want to be able to help defend the Criterions. Read it and be done by dawn tomorrow. We'll begin your training by then." 

These were his last words to her for the day. Now Meryl, sitting on the side of her bed, sighed and opened the book she held at the middle section, reading again from where she had stopped. The inscription in the cover of the book flowed through her mind over and over again like a broken record as she read each page. She would be learning something that has been hidden for a very long time; something that has been forbidden a long time ago. In the front cover of the book was inscribed: Book of Magery Circles Nine and Ten.

-- 

"What!" Kyo exclaimed as he pounded his fist on the arm of his chair.

"For certain, Urumi Kanzaki seeks power, and so she has targeted Order guilds. I have decided to lend our strengths to the Criterions and help destroy Urumi's forces. All else we know are that Tim-o-fee, Wildstallion, and Chobits have already joined her." Jore'Sal said gravely.

"Damn! This battle will not be easy." Xylotyl cursed.

Sieghart nodded.

"I agree." He said. "Urumi herself is already a formidable foe. But put her, Tim-o-fee, Wildstallion, and other powerful chaos warriors out there together…" Sieghart paused.

"Do we have a chance against these enemies?" Smoke asked, interrupting the silence.

Jore'Sal breathed deeply and thought before opening his mouth to speak. 

"Though Chaos may have powerful warriors, we should always remember that even Order has its own strengths. All we need is unity. This is for the sake of Brittannia. We cannot afford to lose." He said.

The Heretics nodded approvingly.

"For now, there are two things I ask of all of you. We are leaving for the Criterion base in three days. I suggest you prepare yourselves by then." Jore'Sal said. "Second, Meryl will be staying here until we leave, so bear with her."

All the Heretics agreed and their meeting ended.

-- 

Lestat was holding a feast in the Criterion house, welcoming the return of PARC, Macky, and Racio. PARC had told him that they have come back to rejoin the Criterions and help with the war.

"I thought you were dead!" Lestat had exclaimed after PARC revealed himself to him at the end of their duel.

He narrated to Lestat and the rest of the Criterions what had really happened during the downfall of the guild. PARC had survived death and had gone on hiding, practicing and training himself to keep his skills sharp. Racio and Macky had also done the same.

PARC was seated at one end of the elongated dinner table, while Lestat was on the other side across him. Racio sat beside PARC, followed by Macky, Shacklebolt, Voldemort, Saber, Jerk, and the rest of the Criterions. The food served was very delicious and so scrumptious that most f them could not escape the appetite of Greenarcher. He had already eaten much of the cuts of ribs and most of the roasted pig. 

"I see that your appetite hasn't changed at all, Greenarcher!" Macky chuckled after taking a couple gulps of water from his mug.

"You can't deprive a man from one of the finest pleasures in life, you know!" Greenarcher replied before he took a huge bite from a chicken leg.

Everyone on the table laughed at his remark and continued their merry meal. 

Shortly after the feast, some of the Criterions went to their rooms to retire. Others stayed awake, some of them still excited about PARC's return while the others did what they usually did on a typical, normal night. Jerk and Saber, who had started an argument during the feast, were still arguing at the dinner table about who among them was the stronger one. Shacklebolt and Voldemort were with Macky, their older brother, telling him what had been happening since he was gone. Totoy Mola, though, planned to follow Miffy into her room, but completely forgot about his fantasies when he spotted Greenarcher sitting alone by the stairway. Greenarcher seemed as if something was bothering him, and Totoy Mola approached to find out.

"Are you alright, Greearcher?" Totoy Mola asked.

Greenarcher nodded.

"Yes." 

"You look like the end of the world is near." Totoy Mola said, raising an eyebrow.

"No, no." Greenarcher replied. "I'm just… worried about the war. I don't know if having PARC, Racio, and Macky again with us would help much in defeating Urumi's forces."

"I see…" Totoy Mola said. "Don't worry about it. I'm sure that we'll come through somehow." He added.

Suddenly, he remembered what he was supposed to do.

"Well," He said, "I have to go up. Miffy will be changing to her night robes. I don't want to miss that!"

Totoy Mola winked and started up the stairs. Greenarcher followed him with his eyes.

"Are you not a more decent man?" He asked.

Totoy Mola snorted and turned to the archer.

"Greenarcher, my man, you can't deprive a person from one of the finest pleasures in life."

With that, he continued up the stairs, chuckling, and leaving Greenarcher behind.

"At least I'm a decent man…" Greenarcher muttered.

-- 

PARC furrowed his eyebrows and wondered.

"Lestat, I haven't seen Meryl yet."

"Meryl? She left for Britain yesterday. I don't know why, but she hasn't returned since then."

"I see…" PARC replied. "Well, Lestat, as the present guildmaster, have you any plans for the war?"

"Of course!" Lestat said. "We'll begin training tomorrow while the others begin recruiting more warriors. And if it's possible, we could go down some dungeons and tame a few dragons to aid us." 

"I'll help with the training." PARC said. "Racio and Macky can help deal with the other preparations."

"Yes, thank you." Lestat replied. "We'll need all the help we can get."


	8. Chapter 8: Ethereal Nightmare

**Chapter 8: The Ninth Circle Spell of Darkness: The Ethereal Nightmare**

"Have you finished reading it?" Jore'Sal asked.

"Yes…" Meryl answered impatiently. "And I barely slept because of it." 

It was morning and the first day of Meryl's training. She was geared in her new Rose Armor, while her master was in Bloodrock. They stood facing each other in the field in front of the Tower of the Nephilim. The rest of the Heretics, except Jade, were also there, anxiously waiting to see whatever their leader planned to teach his lone, female apprentice.

"I don't understand why she has to have special training. She's not a Heretic!" Sieghart complained.

"I agree." Nightflame said, nodding his head. "Jore'Sal didn't even tell us anything about these two Forbidden Spells until now." 

Jore'Sal heard their complaints and turned to them.

"I don't need to teach them to you since I know that all of you are in perfect shape to fight against Urumi's men." Jore'Sal said. "Besides," His lips formed the usual grin that annoyed Meryl so much. "It's my duty to make this idiot more challenging for others."

Meryl flinched as all the Heretics burst into laughter. She gritted her teeth with extreme irritation.

"You know, while you were enjoying yourself a minute there, I would have casted a lightning spell on you. But since you're here to teach me something very important, I'll let that slide. Mind you, I'm not in a very good mood today. So try not to humiliate me early in the morning, especially when I haven't had a good night's sleep." 

Jore'Sal only replied with a smirk. Meryl was still annoyed, and it irritated her even more when he smiled like that.

"All kidding aside though," He began this time in a serious tone. "I hope you're ready for this. Learning the two spells will make you a very powerful magic user."

Meryl nodded.

"But don't let this thought boost your ego." He added. "Though you may become stronger than you are now, there is also always a way to overcome that strength. This is something you must always remember, because it is usually the youth that tend to become so egotistical when it comes to acquiring new powers. But I trust that you're old enough to know this."

Meryl nodded again, as if she were a soldier in an army.

"Alright, let's have a short review. There are four basic spells under each category of Dark and Light." Jore'Sal said, holding out four fingers. "Under Dark, the spells are Harm, Curse, Weaken, and Summon Creature. Under Light—"

"Heal, Bless, Strengthen, and Dispel." Meryl interrupted.

"Good." Jore'Sal commended.

The rest of the Heretics listened intently as Meryl did, for they also wanted to know at least something about the new spells.

"Now, for standard magery, there are only eight Circles. But the last two, also called the Dark and Light of Circles Nine and Ten are also known as the Forbidden Spells, so they are not printed in the common spellbooks. There is only one spell under each of these Circles, considering that they are the most powerful spells in the world." 

Jore'Sal searched his pouch for reagents: Black Pearls, Bloodmoss, and others that were not commonly used for spellcasting. He turned back to the Criterion.

"Today, I will teach you how to properly cast the 9th Circle Spell, Ethereal Nightmare. Just from the name itself, you already know what it does." He said. "I am going to cast this spell on you, but I will try my best to take it easy. This is for you to know what happens to those who fall victim to it."

Meryl began to feel nervous. She trembled at the thought that Jore'Sal would victimize her with one of his spells, and to think that the spell he would be casting was one of the strongest ones.

He took a deep breath and held up his reagents, focusing on Meryl. They disintegrated after he recited a long and unfamiliar chant. The young Criterion was suddenly enclosed inside the image of a star inscribed in a circle, and her surroundings began to dissolve. After her vision became totally distorted, everything she saw faded, and darkness reigned over them. In a matter of seconds, everything turned into nothing.

Meryl was an entity in this emptiness. There was nothing that appealed to her senses, except the sound of her own heartbeat and the sight of her body, which was the only thing radiant in this total blackness. 

"J-Jore'Sal?" Meryl stammered.

There was no answer. Meryl shivered. She was alone; all alone, and no one else was with her. Suddenly, the darkness began to dissolve again and Meryl closed her eyes to prevent herself from feeling nauseous. When she reopened them, she found herself in a vast, green field—a battlefield.

The sun was high up in sky. It was definitely noon. Meryl stood at the center of the field, in between two armies: Order and Chaos. Each of the soldiers carried a shield representing the category they were in. Order shields had the shape of a Kite shield, while Chaos shields were circular. Both had equal defense and quality.

The heat of the sun was nearly unbearable that it made the female Criterion perspire quickly, and it seemed to drain the energy out of her. But the opposing armies faced each other without signs of weakness. The leader of the Order alliance, Lestat, positioned himself in front of his army. He was on a shadow mustang, wearing Bloodrock armor, and holding up a banner with the symbol of Order imprinted on it. On the opposite side, the leader was Urumi Kanzaki, on a black mustang. She wore her usual blackrock armor and also held up a banner containing the symbol of Chaos.

Everything seemed real to Meryl, and she wondered why she was caught in between the two armies and not with Lestat in the Order side.

"Lestat…" She called, but it was too weak.

She knew he could not hear her. His name came out almost in a whisper, though she shouted it. Meryl did not understand why she felt like this. She was confused. Why did she feel so tired and so weak? Even calling the name of someone she looked up to seemed so hard to do. 

There was suddenly a loud battle cry, and the two armies charged towards each other. Both stampeded to the center; to Meryl, not realizing that she was there, paralyzed with fear and unable to move. Not even the army of Order noticed that they could trample on her with their mustangs and zostriches. They began to draw their weapons. 

"L-Lestat!" She cried again, this time trying hard to make it louder than the first.

They were all very close now, and Meryl crouched on the ground. She closed her eyes and covered her head with her arms. Death was a sure thing in this situation. Just before the armies collided with her, she cried out again as loud as she could, but this time, it was not for Lestat.

"JORE'SAL!" 

Meryl opened her eyes and bolted up, panting and perspiring heavily.

"Are you alright?" Jore'Sal's voice rang through her ears.

She found him crouched beside her and carrying a look of worry in his face. Everything was back to normal. She stared down at her lap, recalling everything that had happened.

"I made sure that I modified the spell when I casted it on you. But I did not expect it to affect you this much." Jore'Sal said. "I think it is best if you rest for a while. We'll continue with this later."

He turned to the other Heretics, who were all awestricken at what had happened.

"Smoke." He called. "Get me some water."

"Of course." Smoke answered and entered the tower.

Meryl looked up at her master.

"What was that?" She asked weakly. "And why do I feel… like… I've never been to battle before?"

"If I had given my all on that spell, you would have been dead by now. What you saw was an illusion, an unreal reality that your mind brought to life. The reason why you feel weakened is because the whole time you were having that little nightmare, your strength was being drained. That is the power of the ninth circle: to take you into a world of fear, while it eats you slowly until you become a lifeless body in true reality."

"I see…" Meryl replied softly.

Jore'Sal took Meryl's arm and placed it around his neck. He stood up and supported Meryl as they limped over to the other Heretics, under a tree. He gently placed Meryl against the tree trunk while Smoke returned with a gourd of water. She knelt down beside her and placed the opening of the gourd in her lips, and Meryl gulped the cold but sweet water as it poured into her mouth.

"Take care of her until she feels better." Jore'Sal said, and Smoke nodded.

He then turned to the rest of the Heretics.

"That was some spell." Kyo said as Jore'Sal approached them.

"Why teach her something as dangerous as that?" Xylotyl asked. "Do you really think she can handle it?"

Jore'Sal turned to Meryl and Smoke, and watched as Smoke continued to give her more water. He turned back to his fellow guild mates.

"She can handle it. She is stupid, but my apprentice, after all." He answered with a small smile. "Now, why don't we forget about the matter and have a duel while she recovers? Who among you wants to be the first to taste the ground?"

"How comical, Jore'Sal." Kyo said as he drew his sword. "But I could use a bit of practice."

The Heretics leader, unsheathing his own weapon, grinned in amusement and made his way to the field.

"Come." He said, and waited for Kyo to initiate his attack.

-- 

It did not take long before Meryl regained her strength. She left the group of extremely exhausted Heretics (all had dueled with Jore'Sal and lost) and rejoined her master to continue her training.

"Now that you have seen me cast the spell, I want you to try casting it on this." Jore'Sal said. "Kal Xen." He chanted after he held out a handful of reagents.

A small, glowing star symbol lit up from the ground in front of him, and out of it came an animal that made Meryl's jaw hang from her mouth in surprise. Jore'Sal turned to her.

"Do it." He commanded.

Meryl glowered at her master.

"A chicken?" She said impatiently. "Master Jore'Sal, you know I can do better than that!"

"Just do it, Meryl."

"Can you at least make it a dog?"

"Shut up and cast the spell." Jore'Sal said more firmly.

"Alright, alright!" His apprentice replied in defeat.

Meryl pulled out the needed reagents while Jore'Sal backed away from the summoned animal. Holding them out and aiming at the chicken, she closed her eyes and recited the 9th Circle's long chant. Her reagents immediately disintegrated in a poof of smoke and she heard a loud fizzle. Nothing else happened after that.

Jore'Sal rolled his eyes while Meryl pulled out another handful of reagents. She recited the chant again but the result was also the same, and Jore'Sal rested his forehead on his knuckles.

"Alright, one more time…" Meryl said and she drank a bottle of mana refresh.

She took the needed reagents again and focused on the chicken. Reciting the long chant once again, the reagents disintegrated. What followed was another loud fizzle and nothing else.

Meryl looked back innocently at her master, as he gave her the look that seemed to say, "You are an idiot".

"I can always try, try, and try again." Meryl replied to the message in her master's face.

Jore'Sal sighed.

"Today is going to be a long day…"


	9. Chapter 9: Timofee's Appearance

**Chapter 9: Timofee's Appearance**

The Criterions gathered outside the guildhouse. They predicted a very busy day for them because Lestat had finally decided to take action in preparation for the war. He divided them into three groups: one for weaponry and armory, the second for recruitment, and the third for extensive battle training (since many were inexperienced). Those under weaponry and armory were led by Racio, and the group consisted of Mamyel, Warlord, and Greenarcher. Those for recruitment were led under Macky, and the group members were Shacklebolt, Miffy, and Totoy Mola (much to Miffy's dismay.). PARC led the rest under the training group.

Most of them proceeded to complete their tasks right away. Macky's group was the first to leave before Racio's. On their mustangs and zostriches, they rode off to Cove territory to recruit those from other Order guilds.

"What's taking Meryl?" Greenarcher asked Lestat worriedly as he packed a few mana potions and a communication crystal in his bag.

"I don't know." Lestat replied. "But I'm sure she's alright." 

"Should I search for her?" Greenarcher asked.

But Lestat shook his head.

"No, it's best if you stay with Racio and help with the armory. You're the only one who can find Brimstone. We'll need his help."

"I understand." The archer said.

-- 

She had mastered it. Meryl was finally able to cast the ninth spell almost perfectly, and it quite surprised Jore'Sal that she could learn to do it at such a short time right before sunset. She had been practicing constantly on summoned chickens. Soon, she practiced on summoned dogs and horses, then finally on polar bears. Meryl had been overjoyed when Jore'Sal commended her, which was something he rarely did. Of course, he did not fail to come up with a statement to infuriate her even after complementing his lone apprentice. It always amused him so much to have her fuming at him.

Jore'Sal decided to demonstrate to Meryl the 10th Circle before nightfall. After a short rest, his apprentice found herself facing him again. The other Heretics were now in the tower, watching from the balcony. 

"For now, since you have done well in performing the 9th Circle at such a short time, I will demonstrate to you the 10th Circle magic attack, Holy Light. This is so you would have an idea about what kind of spell it is before I officially begin teaching it to you tomorrow." Jore'Sal said, and Meryl nodded in reply.

"Now, the 10th Circle spell isn't really an attack although it may be used as an offensive. Rather, it is a contrast to the previous spell, the Ethereal Nightmare. The 10th Circle, Holy Light, is used more for defense. It is used to counter or to protect either yourself or someone else from the Ethereal Nightmare."

The leader of the Heretics pulled and held out some reagents from his bag and aimed at his apprentice.

"I will use the spell on you." He said. "Don't even think of running away no matter what happens." He added in such a forceful tone that it made Meryl shudder.

Concentrating on her, Jore'Sal recited another unfamiliar chant. The reagents disintegrated, and a golden white light the shape of a curved stick formed from the hand that held them. He gripped the glowing object, holding it as if he were holding a bow, and he took an arrow from his quiver. The arrow also began to glow splendidly with golden white radiance and it made Meryl watch with awe.

"When the spell is properly casted," The master began, "It takes the form of the weapon of your skill. In my case, it is a bow. For you, since you're a swordswoman," He thought for a moment, "I'd say it's a cleaver!" And he gave his apprentice his usual smile of mockery.

Meryl glowered at him, trying her best to control her sudden burst of anger.

"One of these days, Master…." She muttered. "Just one of these days…"

Her eyes widened when she watched Jore'Sal load the bow, aiming at her. The Criterion's anger faded as unease poured within her. The arrow's glaring light made her take one step back.

"W-What are you going to do?" Meryl asked nervously.

But Jore'Sal gave an answer that did not put her at ease.

"Don't move."

He released the arrow and it traveled through the air at an incredible speed. Meryl, knowing all too well that she had no time to evade it, closed her eyes and held her arms in front of her, shielding herself from the arrow's blinding light. She waited for that moment when it would penetrate her chest and pierce her heart. But much to her surprise, instead, the arrow shattered like a mirror dropped on the ground. The shards glittered around her like magical powder, and the young Criterion opened her eyes just in time to catch a glimpse of the blessed light.

She was suddenly strengthened and relieved of all fatigue, as if she had just awakened from a full night's sleep. It was then that Jore'Sal spoke.

"Yes, the 10th Circle heals all injuries and strengthens the weakened. It can also be used as support, defense, or attack. But as an attack, it can only affect evils and those consumed with darkness. That is why the arrow shattered when it made contact with you. You, being a loyal member of the Criterions, possess a pure and clean soul that my arrow has nothing in you to destroy."

"I see." Meryl said, now understanding why her master had released an arrow at her.

Jore'Sal gave his apprentice a warm smile.

"Come. Tomorrow will be another busy day for you." He said as he walked to his tower.

Meryl grinned back and followed, looking forward to tomorrow's practice. 

-- 

The sun's rays disturbed her. Though her eyes were closed, Meryl could still see the golden light through her eyelids. It took a while before she finally opened them and she glanced out the window beside her bed. It was sunrise.

Meryl got up from the bed and listened hard if any of the Heretics were awake. She was satisfied with the silence and glad that she had awoken before Jore'Sal, or else he would have been the one waking her up by throwing a tub of cold water over her. Changing into her Rose armor, she prepared her bag and packed a few more mana potions and reagents. She left the room and strolled down the stairs as quietly as she could.

Meryl left the tower and felt herself relax as she inhaled the cool, morning air. It had been a very long time before she felt this kind of peace.

"IN POR YLEM!"

A fiery arrow coursed through the morning air and knocked the Criterion off her feet. Meryl looked up to see who had attacked her, and found Kyo, in Bloodrock armor, chuckling a few meters away.

"Good morning, Meryl!" He said, smiling mischievously.

Meryl stood up, dusting herself off, and grinned back sarcastically at her attacker.

"You've been around Jore'Sal for too long…" She said.

Kyo laughed.

"No," he said, "You're just someone I find amusing."

"Is that so?" Meryl replied, returning a mischievous grin.

She gripped the hilt of her sword.

"Then prepare yourself!"

Meryl charged towards Kyo, unsheathing her weapon. Kyo reacted just in time and blocked her attack with his battle axe of Force. Backing away, Meryl swung her sword again, but her opponent quickly evaded it. He countered with his axe but the Criterion was lighter and quicker, and she dodged the blow as she pulled out some of her reagents.

"Des Mani!" She chanted.

Kyo felt the weight of his axe and armor pull him down, making him slightly more vulnerable. But he held on tightly to his axe and fiercely swung it diagonally at Meryl. She parried his strike with her sword and spun behind him, kicking him at the back. Kyo stumbled and fell to the ground.

"Having fun?" Meryl asked, smirking.

Kyo sneered as he stood up.

"I'm just getting started!"

He held up his axe and charged towards Meryl. Using her sword, Meryl blocked the attack, but the force of Kyo's blow made her take a few steps back. She held on, keeping the axe from making contact with her, but the Heretic was slowly overpowering her. There was a sudden whisper that traveled through Meryl's ears and made her blink. 

"Did you hear that?" She asked.

"Hear what?" Kyo gave her confused look.

Both warriors suddenly felt themselves freeze and they dropped their weapons. They were caught in a paralyze field.

"ARGH!" Kyo yelled.

"Paralyze field!" Meryl cried.

"Well, I didn't expect to catch both of you there." A deep, cold voice said. "I must be fortunate this time."

Kyo and Meryl looked around for the one who had spoken.

"Who are you? Show yourself!" The Heretic yelled.

"As you wish…" The voice replied.

A shadow platemail armored man on a zostrich appeared in front of them. Meryl and Kyo's jaws dropped when they recognized their attacker. It was one of Urumi's trusted ally; a notorious murderer in Britannia: Timofee.

"You!" Meryl exclaimed.

"Release us at once!" Kyo said furiously. "It's only daybreak and you're already up to your murderous antics!"

Timofee smiled evilly.

"We're at war here. And we'll do whatever it takes to make sure we emerge victorious. Besides, worry about your own life. I came here for the Criterion's head."

"What!" Meryl exclaimed.

Timofee let out a small, malicious laugh.

"A Criterion lost is a moment of joy gained." He replied coldly, and drew his weapon.

Meryl struggled to be free from the field but failed. She glanced up at Timofee, who prepared to give her a finishing strike. But before he could swing his sword, an arrow zipped through the air towards him. He jumped away in time and the arrow exploded when it hit the wall of the tower.

"Lord Jore'Sal!" Kyo exclaimed with relief.

Meryl turned her head and found the shooter, the fierce leader of the Heretics. He glared angrily at Timofee.

"You will touch her with not an inch of your filthy blade!" He growled. "And you have a lot of nerve showing yourself here without any comrades!"

Timofee chuckled in amusement.

"Do you take me for a fool?" He said. "I did not come alone."

The trees suddenly rustled and from their shadows emerged creatures most warriors feared. Each of the green, scaly lizardmen hissed as they stomped their way towards the field, carrying spears and maces. They hungered for flesh and blood, drooling at the sight of Kyo, Meryl and Jore'Sal.

"Lizardmen?" Kyo exclaimed.

"They're not just any lizardmen! They look tamed!" Meryl followed.

Kyo and Meryl could not believe it. No one they know could tame lizardmen. These types of creatures were too wild to tame even for one of the greatest animal tamers, Totoy Mola.

"How do you like our new army, Jore'Sal?" Timofee snickered.

The leader of the Heretics did not move but he continued to glare at him. 

"Now you're the one who's outnumbered." Timofee said evilly.

"No." A deep, feminine voice said firmly.

Behind the paralyze field, three Heretics stood with their weapons drawn: Smoke, Xylotyl, and Nightflame.

"This is an even fight." She added.

"Amusing..." Timofee said with a malicious grin and turned to his reptilian soldiers. "Kill them."

The lizardmen hissed and waved their weapons in the air before charging towards their prey. Jore'Sal withdrew his bow and unsheathed his sword, readying himself for battle. The paralyze field was about to fade, and Meryl struggled to be free as Timofee dashed towards her with his weapon raised. But before he could reach her, Jore'Sal intervened and both were soon engaged in battle.

Smoke, Xylotyl, and Nightflame were not having an easier time. Wherever they turned, a lizardman charged towards them.

"Xylotyl!" Kyo yelled. "We could use a little help here!"

Xylotyl turned to Kyo and Meryl, who were still struggling to be free from the disappearing paralyze field, while a lizardman approached them, preparing to strike with its mace.

Quickly pulling out his reagents, Xylotyl aimed at Kyo and chanted, "In Por Ylem!"

A fiery arrow struck Kyo and threw him out of the paralyze field. As he landed on the ground, he grabbed his own reagents and chanted while aiming at the lizardman.

"An Ex Por!"

The enemy froze on the spot, hissing and cursing Kyo for preventing it from killing the Criterion.

"Thanks, Kyo." Meryl said.

"Don't mention it!" He replied as he charged behind her and tackled her out of the paralyze field. She fell forward at the feet of the frozen lizardman.

"Sorry about that." Kyo apologized with a grin. He held up his axe and struck down the nearest lizard.

Rolling her eyes, Meryl picked up her sword from the ground and stood. She faced her paralyzed foe and held up her weapon. The lizard hissed as she glared at it with rage and she thrusted her sword through the reptile's chest.

"One down…" She said as she pulled out her now bloody blade. The lizard fell to the ground, dead, and its blood flowed from the wound. 

Another lizard with a long spear came dashing towards her from behind. Sensing this, Meryl moved with agility and evaded the lizard's attack. Her foe quickly turned and thrusted its spear a few times, trying to stab her, but Meryl also dodged each of the blows. She parried the last attack with her sword and swiftly spun forward. She cut the lizard through its belly with her sword and blood spurted on the ground.

"Two down." She said.

Timofee noticed the decreasing number of his lizardmen, much to his surprise. Blocking all of Jore'Sal's attacks, he parried the last and kicked Jore'Sal away.

"You're fortunate this time." He said sharply. "You may have won the battle but the war isn't over yet."

With that, he called the rest of the lizardmen and pulled out his reagents.

"Vas Rel Por." Timofee chanted.

A moongate opened before him, and he and the lizardmen entered it. Before long, all of the invaders have gone and the moongate closed. 

Jore'Sal took a deep breath and sighed.

"Cowards…." He said.

He turned to the rest.

"Is anyone hurt?"

"No problems here, Lord Jore'Sal. Just a few light injuries." Nightflame replied.

"I'm fine here, too." Kyo added.

"Meryl?" Jore'Sal asked as he turned to the Criterion.

Meryl pulled out a piece of cloth and wiped the blood clean off her weapon before sheathing it.

"I'm alright." She replied with a small smile.

"Good." The leader of the Heretics said. "Everyone, I have made a change of plans."

Meryl and the rest of the Heretics looked up at him, alarmed.

"We will leave immediately for the Criterion base. Prepare yourselves now, and contact the others."

"Yes sir." The Heretics replied and entered the tower.

Meryl remained where she was, confused.

"I haven't learned the 10th Circle yet." She said.

"There's no time. It is best for you to return to them now. The Criterions will need you and Urumi's forces are getting stronger. The longer the delay, the weaker we become against her."

Meryl hesitated, and then nodded.

"Alright."


	10. Chapter 10: The Second Loss of a Leader

**Chapter 10: The Second Loss of a Leader**

"DAMN YOU!" Lestat cursed as he continuously tried to slash Chobits. 

The latter blocked each attack, smiling widely in amusement.

"Temper, temper, Lestat." He said. "Or you might become like PARC." 

The remark only made Lestat angrier and he blindly continued to attack the rogue knight. This was the cause of his anger: He had lost a member and friend, one quite close to him, and he could not forgive Chobits for it.

The Criterion base was under attack. Chobits led his army of Halloween Rodents. Unfortunately for the Criterions, most of them had left to recruit and to prepare the armor and weapons. Those left behind were still in training. Many of them had gotten injured fighting the Rodents. Because of this, Lestat had ordered Darth Maul to contact the rest of the Criterions with a communication crystal and have them fall back. But before Darth Maul could reach the crystal in his bag, Chobits had fired a poison arrow behind him. Lestat had seen this and watched as Chobits approached the writhing body of poor Darth Maul. Chobits thrust his sword down through his chest, and the Criterion breathed his last. PARC had also witnessed this terrible event, and he and Lestat faced Chobits with heated fury.

Jerk took Darth Maul's place in contacting the rest of the Criterions and approached his guild mate's corpse. Searching his bag, he found the communication crystal and called into it.

"Macky! Macky, are you there?"

"What's wrong, Jerk?" Macky's voice in the crystal replied.

A Halloween Rodent suddenly shot an enormous fireball at Jerk. The Criterion jumped away in time and hid behind a tree,

"We're under attack!" Jerk exclaimed. "Under Lestat's orders, we need you and your group to fall back immediately!"

"We're on our way." Macky replied.

Jerk placed the crystal in his bag and rejoined his brother, who was already running out of reagents. It took a while before a blue moongate appeared in their midst. A knight in bloodrock armor stepped out from the gate followed by a group of knights who came out one by one.

"What in the--!"

"Halloween Rodents!" Shacklebolt interrupted Macky.

"Everyone," Macky announced to his group. "Help the others. I'll look for Lestat."

It was chaotic. The base was filled with the blood of some Halloween Rodents and the Criterions themselves were becoming exhausted. Arrows zipped through the air while fireballs were shot back. Flamestrike and Poison spells were being cast, and underneath the chants the mages recited were the thuds of swords and axes on the bodies of the Rodents, which were drowning out the clashes of the weapons of PARC, Lestat, and Chobits.

"Why so angry?" Chobits asked maliciously, blocking Lestat and PARC's attacks. "This is war. There is bound to be someone who dies." 

PARC growled.

"Then consider yourself as one of those who die!"

He swung his war axe but Chobits parried with his sword and pushed PARC away. Lestat came next, slashing his weapon horizontally across his opponent's head, but he ducked just in time and attacked the Criterion's mid-section. Lestat swiftly blocked it and pulled up his sword. He swung it downwards and Chobits rolled away, pulling out his reagents.

"An Ex Por!" He chanted.

Lestat reacted late and froze in his steps. PARC came up from behind, and Chobits, sensing the danger, whirled around and clanged his sword against PARC's. Kicking him away, he caught him off-guard and pulled out another handful of reagents.

"An Ex Por!" He chanted again and PARC froze.

Chobits sneered.

"You Criterions are still no match for me. This time, I'll make sure you breathe your last."

He took out more reagents from his bag and chanted, "In Ex Grav." 

"No!" Lestat yelled. He knew what was coming next.

But two Halloween Rodents came and stood against him, prepared to strike if Lestat made a move. Chobits pulled out a bottle of pinkish liquid from his bag. He held it up by the neck and waved it at PARC.

"You know what this is, don't you?" Chobits said, grinning nastily. 

PARC scowled at him and Chobits decided to answer his own question. 

"This is a Greater Explosion. One of the very last things my victims see before they meet their end."

He then turned to the struggling Lestat.

"And you," Chobits said, "Are going to have the honor to watch him die before you do."

With one last vicious grin, he tossed the explosion at PARC. Everything had gone in slow motion as Lestat watched the deathly bottle fly towards his paralyzed mentor. But it seemed, though, as if a miracle arose in an instant. Before the bottle could hit PARC, someone's arm, covered in a bloodrock gauntlet, had extended a hand caught the bottle. It was caught with great care and much caution that it did not explode at contact. This was the miracle, and Lestat could only be glad and relieved that PARC's life was spared.

"Macky!" Lestat exclaimed.

"I was just in time, I see." Mackyl said, grinning, and he tossed the bottle to the nearest rodent.

As expected, it shattered on the vile creature's head, allowing the pink liquid to flow from it. But this liquid immediately emitted an explosion, and the rodent dropped on the ground, headless.

"This battle is over, Chobits. You and your filthy band of rodents are outnumbered." Macky said.

"The Heretics have come!" Spectre yelled in the background.

Chobits sneered, and he tightened his grip on the hilt of his sword. He could not admit defeat, though he was indeed outnumbered. Not far away from them was a moongate, where a number of Heretics stepped out. Meryl came last and this seemed to make Chobits change his mind. 

"Alright, you win." He said. "But this war is not yet over."

Chobits called to the Halloween Rodents and pulled out a rune. Taking out some reagents, he chanted "Vas Rel Por", and soon, a moongate appeared. But before he could step into the gate, he heard a female voice yell his name, and all turned to Meryl, who quickly stomped towards them. She bumped into Saber, but instead of apologizing, she immediately grabbed his bow and pulled an arrow from his quiver. 

"Hey!" Saber yelled, but Meryl did not notice, and she loaded the bow, aiming directly at Chobits.

She stopped midway between Chobits and her cousin, still holding the bow and arrow. Meryl was filled with anger; an anger she had never before felt. But Chobits grinned his usual nasty grin.

"I'll be waiting for you when the real battle begins." He said wickedly. 

"MURDERER!" Meryl screamed and released the arrow, but rather awkwardly.

She was actually a poor archer and she had no skill whatsoever with a bow. The arrow coursed clumsily through the air and missed Chobits, landing a few feet away from him. With one last grin, he stepped into the moongate while the rest of the rodents followed.


End file.
